International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
December 16, 2019
Hannes Kettner, Sam Gandy, Eline Haijen et al.
159 citations
People who use psychedelics report a stronger sense of connection to nature, and this increase lasts for at least two years. In a prospective online study, individuals planning to use a psychedelic completed questionnaires before and after their experience. Nature relatedness was significantly higher at 2 weeks, 4 weeks, and 2 years after the experience. The increase was linked to greater psychological well-being and depended on how strongly participants felt ego-dissolution and how much they perceived their natural surroundings during the acute psychedelic state. The findings suggest a causal, context-dependent effect of psychedelic use on nature relatedness, with implications for mental health treatments and planetary health.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
April 17, 2018
Carola Rong, Caroline Park, Joshua D. Rosenblat et al.
116 citations
Ketamine produces rapid antidepressant effects in treatment-resistant depression associated with major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. Identifying which patients will benefit remains a priority. This review identifies multiple pretreatment predictors of response, including high body mass index, family history of alcohol use disorder, history of suicide, adiponectin and vitamin B12 levels, delta sleep ratio abnormalities, glutamine/glutamate ratio, anterior cingulate cortex activity, the Val66Met BDNF allele, and processing speed. High BMI and family history of alcohol use disorder were the most replicated predictors. A complete pheno-biotype of depression likely to benefit from ketamine is far from complete, though metabolic-inflammatory alterations, especially cognitive impairment, are emerging as possible predictors.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
April 12, 2021
Hao Chen, Chao Liu, Xinyi Cao et al.
55 citations
An eight-week loving-kindness meditation (LKM) training program improved empathy and communication skills among 106 doctors in a Chinese hospital, but did not significantly change their mindfulness levels. Doctors randomly assigned to LKM training showed greater gains in empathy and communication compared with a waiting-list control group. The findings suggest LKM may help enhance physician-patient interactions, though the reasons for the lack of effect on mindfulness require further study.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
October 28, 2019
Nathan Pearson, James H. Berry
44 citations
Evidence links cannabis use to psychotic outcomes ranging from mild to severe and from minutes to years. Because studies vary widely in exposures and measures, a coherent account is difficult. This review organizes the association using DSM-5 diagnoses: Cannabis Intoxication, Cannabis-Induced Psychotic Disorder, and Schizophrenia. Cannabis intoxication can progress to Cannabis-Induced Psychotic Disorder when severity and duration criteria are met, and that disorder is strongly associated with future schizophrenia diagnoses. The framework suggests a continuum of cannabis-related psychosis.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
September 22, 2020
Ornella Santonastaso, Vittoria Zaccari, Cristiano Crescentini et al.
43 citations
A preliminary trial compared mindfulness-oriented meditation (MOM) training with an active control condition (Emotion Education Program, EEP) in 25 children aged 7–11 years with ADHD. MOM training, administered three times per week for eight weeks, led to significant improvements in all neuropsychological outcome measures and in ADHD symptoms, whereas the control condition did not. The authors suggest MOM training is a promising complementary or alternative intervention for ameliorating cognitive and clinical manifestations of ADHD.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
June 13, 2021
Luís Carlos Matos, Jorge Pereira Machado, Fernando Jorge Monteiro et al.
34 citations
Non-contact biofield practices such as Reiki, therapeutic touch, healing touch, and external Qigong involve intentional and nonlocal interventions that may produce physiological changes through unknown mechanisms, possibly related to the body's neurovegetative feedback system. This narrative review provides a partial overview of the history, theory, and quantitative research strategies exploring these practices, aiming to stimulate further research to confirm or deny reported outcomes.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
August 2, 2021
Lisa Reynolds, Amelia Akroyd, Frederick Sundram et al.
33 citations
Cancer healthcare professionals—doctors, nurses, psychologists, and social workers—show openness to psychedelic-assisted therapy for advanced cancer patients, driven by a desire to alleviate suffering and a lack of effective current treatments. However, this openness is tempered by concerns about patient safety and the need for rigorous, well-designed trials. The study identified four themes: beneficence (alleviating suffering), non-maleficence (keeping vulnerable patients safe), viewing psychedelic-assisted therapy as a transformative approach with real potential, and recognizing that new frontiers carry risks. These findings offer a foundation for engaging healthcare professionals in future research and clinical applications.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
December 13, 2021
Yuzheng Wang, Lingqiu Liao, Xiaoxiao Lin et al.
30 citations
From 1900 to 2021, research on meditation—especially mindfulness meditation—grew from a single article in 1963 to 19,752 publications. The United States leads in collaboration, output, and citations. The journal Mindfulness published the most articles, and the most cited paper is Brown and Ryan's work on mindfulness and psychological well-being. Frequently studied topics include mindfulness, meditation, depression, intervention, stress reduction, stress, and anxiety. Before 2010, research focused on hypertension, cancer, and generalized anxiety disorder; after 2010, interest shifted to meta-analysis, attention, self-assessment, and mindfulness-based interventions. These results map the field's development and guide future research.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
January 19, 2023
Iga Stokłosa, Gniewko Więckiewicz, Maciej Stokłosa et al.
25 citations
No single effective drug for alcohol abuse has been identified, despite centuries of effort, due to the complexity of alcohol dependence. Psychotherapy remains the main treatment, with few FDA-approved medications—acamprosate, disulfiram, and naltrexone—and nalmefene approved by the EMA available to augment it. Recent reports suggest baclofen, topiramate, varenicline, and gabapentin may be useful. Clinical trials with psilocybin and MDMA show promise as breakthroughs, but much more research is needed before new pharmacological treatments become widely available.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
April 27, 2022
Hao Chen, Chao Liu, Fang Zhou et al.
25 citations
Focused-attention meditation (FAM) training improved surgeons' flow levels, communication skills, and safety attitudes, and was associated with a lower incidence of adverse clinical events. In a randomized trial with 140 surgeons from three hospitals in China, those who received 8 weeks of FAM training showed significant improvements on three scales measuring flow, communication, and safety attitudes compared to a waitlist control group. The FAM group also had significantly fewer adverse events during the intervention period. The findings suggest that cognitive ergonomics approaches such as FAM may help reduce patient safety incidents in surgical settings.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
January 19, 2023
Koen Ponnet, Bert Hauspie, Nicky Dirkx et al.
21 citations
Attendees of electronic dance music events are a high-risk group for substance use. A survey of 1345 Belgian attendees found that ecstasy/MDMA/Molly (52.28%), other synthetic hallucinogens (53.68%), ketamine (42.13%), amphetamines (40.45%), and alkyl nitrites (32.76%) were most used at festivals, outdoor parties, and raves. Cocaine was prevalent in nightclubs (32.29%), while cannabis (68.88%) and magic mushrooms (66.44%) were most used at private events. Overall enjoyment was the key motive for attendance, followed by music and socialization. Users rated many motives (dance, exploration, escapism, excitement, alcohol, drugs) as more important than non-users. Substance use prevalence depended on the event setting, and a three-dimensional classification of attendance motives was supported.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
November 1, 2021
Andrea Poli, A. Gemignani, F. Soldani et al.
21 citations
Lower resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), a measure of vagal tone, is linked to PTSD and OCD, and contemplative practices may increase RSA by activating the ventral vagal complex, aiding recovery. A systematic review of six studies (one cross-sectional, one pre-post, two cohort, two randomized controlled trials) found that mindfulness-related interventions increased parasympathetic activity and vagal tone while improving PTSD and OCD symptoms. Under polyvagal theory, mindfulness and compassion meditations act as neural exercises that expand the ventral vagal complex's capacity to regulate present states and build resilience.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
September 9, 2022
Christin Mellner, Micael Dahlen, Otto Simonsson
18 citations
People who have ever used classic psychedelics (such as LSD or psilocybin) report slightly fewer sick days in the past month than those who have never used them, after accounting for demographics, risky behavior, and other substance use. The analysis of a large, nationally representative US sample (over 400,000 adults) found a small but statistically significant negative association. The authors caution that the finding is correlational and that more research is needed to determine whether psychedelics actually cause reduced sick leave and to understand possible mechanisms.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
September 17, 2022
Karin Matko, Peter Sedlmeier, Holger C Bringmann
17 citations
All four 8-week treatments—mantra meditation alone, meditation plus physical yoga, meditation plus ethical education, and all three combined—similarly improved body awareness, emotion regulation, self-compassion, and distress tolerance in adults new to yoga and meditation. These benefits persisted at 2- and 12-month follow-ups despite declining home practice. Mantra meditation alone had the least favorable effect on daily affect, while adding physical yoga best prevented negative affective responses. The findings suggest that mantra meditation is the central component driving improvements in interoception, self-awareness, and embodied processing, even though it negatively influenced affect on its own.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
April 14, 2023
Anum Sarfraz, Salma Siddiqui, Julieta Galante et al.
14 citations
A pilot randomized controlled trial tested the feasibility of an online Mindfulness Training Course (MTC) adapted for Pakistani university students. 156 students were randomly assigned to MTC or a wait-list control; 102 completed surveys, and 18 MTC participants were interviewed. The MTC group showed higher mindfulness and psychological wellbeing and lower stress compared to controls. Attrition was high, but completers gave positive feedback. The study suggests a larger trial is feasible with revised recruitment to reduce dropout.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
July 21, 2023
Guido Huisman, Maximilian Menke, Oliver Grundmann et al.
13 citations
Kratom, a Southeast Asian plant containing alkaloids that affect humans, is sold online in strains marketed as having distinct effects. A survey of 644 current kratom users compared self-reported effects of red, green, and white strains. Respondents reported distinct subjective experiences matching marketing claims, but independent laboratory analysis of the products found no significant differences in alkaloid content across strains. This suggests marketing narratives and anecdotal reports may disproportionately influence perceived effects. Future work should include more diverse populations and vendors, and blinded experiments could determine whether reported differences stem from placebo or other factors like minor alkaloids or terpenes.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
July 1, 2022
Elin Pöllänen, Walter Osika, Otto Simonsson et al.
12 citations
People who have used classic psychedelics tend to report less speciesism and more solidarity with animals, though no link was found with their desire to help animals. Among those who used psychedelics, stronger ego dissolution during their most intense experience was associated with less speciesism, more animal solidarity, and a greater desire to help animals. These associations come from a large US-representative sample of 2,822 adults. The authors caution that the findings do not demonstrate causality and call for longitudinal studies to explore whether psychedelic use directly influences human–animal relations.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
April 8, 2019
Stephen D. Edwards
10 citations
Planetary healing motivated an investigation into the HeartMath Global Coherence Initiative. A single case study with limited data indicated the null hypothesis. Quantitative analysis of correlations between six global magnetometers and meditation records from Inner Balance and Global Coherence apps yielded unexpected trends, both significant and insignificant, toward global and local group coherence. Qualitative findings revealed variations on interrelated themes of wholeness, holistic healing, energy healing, and meditation. Interpretation of integrative findings indicated theoretical and practical support for the HeartMath mission of developing personal, social, and global coherence.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
May 29, 2022
Ahmed Al-Imam, Marek A Motyka, Zuzanna Witulska et al.
7 citations
Psychedelics induce altered consciousness via the 5-HT2A receptor. Online searches in Poland for twenty psychedelics from 2017 to 2022 were analyzed using Google Trends data. Holt–Winters exponential smoothing revealed that twelve (60%) of the substances had significant seasonal patterns: psilocybin and ayahuasca showed annual seasonality, four substances (LSD, AL-LAD, DXM, DOB) had half-yearly seasonality, and six (cannabis, dronabinol, ergine, NBOMe, phencyclidine, salvinorin A) followed a quarterly pattern. The pandemic led to a significant positive change in search trends for psilocybin, ergine, and DXM. These spatiotemporal patterns may aid health authorities in monitoring and preventing addictions.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
March 24, 2022
Maurizio Gorgoni, Serena Scarpelli, Valentina Alfonsi et al.
7 citations
Dream activity significantly shifted during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a sample of 108 participants revealing reduced dream frequency from 43% during total lockdown to 22% post-lockdown. Emotional intensity and vividness also declined, with fear remaining the dominant emotion in dreams (26.9% at lockdown, 22.2% post-lockdown). Despite improved sleep latency and fewer PTSD-related disruptions post-lockdown, poor sleep quality and high anxiety persisted. These findings suggest that the pandemic's emotional toll continues to shape our dreams, supporting the continuity hypothesis.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
November 13, 2024
Rebecca Ciacchini, Ciro Conversano, Graziella Orrù et al.
5 citations
A mindfulness-based stress reduction program for people with chronic pain (fibromyalgia or low back pain) improved sleep quality and showed a marginal increase in trait mindfulness. The intervention reduced perceived stress differently between the two diagnostic groups, and it also reduced anxiety in those with fibromyalgia and depressive symptoms in those with low back pain. These results suggest that mindfulness-based approaches could be tailored for personalized pain management.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
July 7, 2024
Beverley Martin, Blake Peck, Daniel Terry
5 citations
A scoping review of 17 studies examined whether yoga, as a contemplative practice in higher education, supports first-year medical and nursing students' well-being and self-knowledge during the transition from high school to university. Two themes emerged: physical practices and training, and barriers to success. The review suggests that yoga helps undergraduate students manage stress, and that the participatory, reflective processes embedded in the physical practice provide a framework for coping with the challenges of higher education.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
December 14, 2024
Kamila Dvořáková, Laura García Valladares, Bethany Butzer et al.
3 citations
A professional development program combining self-compassion and mindfulness practices improved primary school teachers' well-being in the Czech Republic. Teachers who participated reported higher self-efficacy and self-compassion, and lower depression, anxiety, and emotional exhaustion immediately after the program compared to a control group. While the control group's subjective well-being worsened over the school year, the intervention group remained stable, suggesting a protective effect. The study involved 104 teachers from five schools, with outcomes measured before, immediately after, and five months following the program.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
October 1, 2021
S. Amigó
3 citations
A brief psychological intervention called Self-Regulation Therapy (SRT), which uses suggestion and classical conditioning to reproduce the positive effects of illegal drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, and ecstasy, improved coping with stress and emotionality in young adults. Fifteen volunteers (8 males, 7 females, average age 24.6) completed pre- and post-intervention assessments over 10 days and a 4-week follow-up. SRT outperformed no intervention across four coping strategies and both positive and negative emotionality, with improvements maintained at follow-up. The findings suggest that reproducing the positive effects of illegal drugs via SRT can enhance coping and emotional regulation.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
April 9, 2025
Ana Junça-Silva, Marisa Kulyk, António Caetano
2 citations
Morning meditation boosts positive affect and improves end-of-day vitality and mental health, especially when the preceding night's sleep was poor. In a study of 44 healthcare employees across five workdays, morning meditation was linked to higher positive affect, which in turn predicted better health indicators. Sleep quality moderated this effect: the benefit of meditation on mental health and vitality through positive affect was strongest after a poor night's sleep. The findings suggest that meditation micro-breaks are most helpful when sleep quality is low, offering a practical strategy for supporting well-being in high-stress workplaces.